JK Rowling is huge again, this time on the Web

A website set up by J K Rowling, author of the Harry Potter books, has had a record 220 million visits in eight weeks.

It now receives 27 million "hits" a week, compared with an average for other popular children's sites of one million.

Fans of the series in 236 countries, including Libya, Tonga, Iraq, Christmas Island and the Vatican, have accessed the website - jkrowling.com - which ranks alongside Robbie Williams's website as one of the most popular in the "entertainment" category.

Rob Noble, managing director of Lightmaker, who designed the site, said: "As with anything Jo has done, it's a phenomenon."

When she disclosed the title of her next book, Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, the hits rose to 600 per second, with 16 million hits in a 12-hour period.